BRATTLEBORO- TV dance shows have boosted interest in dance. From little kids to college students to baby boomers, more and more people are interested in dance. This hype has helped draw attention to dance programs at colleges and universities across the country. Now, the region looks to boost economic development and morale following the devastating effects of 2011’s Tropical Storm Irene with a major dance festival, The Southern Vermont Dance Festival.

The festival is slated for July 18 to 21. The four-day festival will be filled with lectures, workshops, performance, live music, and community events taught by world-class faculty.

The artistic executive director of the festival, Brenda Siegel, lost everything in Tropical Storm Irene. Her love and concern for her hometown are at the heart of her interest in the festival. She has been displaced since this past December when she and her son moved into a new house. She says, “If I am going to organize and host a dance event that takes place in Brattleboro, it has to help rebuild our businesses. It has to contribute to the growth of our local economy in a real and tangible way.”

The long weekend will host a wide variety of workshops that are aimed to reach all levels of dancers from the professional to the dance enthusiast. Instruction will be given by faculty including Donlin Foreman, former Martha Graham dancer; Billbob Brown, director of dance at UMass Amherst; Felice Wolfzahn, dance faculty from Mount Holyoke and Bennington colleges; Maria Simpson, dance faculty at Bard College; Lorraine Chapman, director of LCTC (Lorraine Chapman the Company) and faculty at the Boston Conservatory; and Adrian Hawkins, world renowned choreographer and dance faculty.

There will be formal performances on Friday, July 18, Saturday, July 19, and Sunday, July 20. Presenting work on these three nights will be many of this generation’s greats, Chaos Theory Dance, LCTC Lorraine Chapman, Jennifer Weber from Decadancetheater, Felice Wolfzahn, Jessica Howard, IBIT Dance Company, and many more.

Classes will be offered in ballet, modern, middle Eastern, jazz, hip-hop, composition, African, yoga, pilates, and more. Ticketed festival-goers will be offered four classes per day and two formal performances throughout the weekend in addition to access to all informal performances, outdoor performances, live music, and all other community events.

Participants can choose to attend the festival for the full four days or sample the festival on one day only; in addition they can purchase tickets to attend the performances throughout the weekend. Classes will be filled on a first-come, first-served basis and can be registered for online once a ticket is purchased. Tickets are available by visiting www.southernvermontdancefestival.com.

The festival weekend will be filled with raffle events, downtown performances and workshops as well as live music and performances hosted by various local businesses. The event will be accessible to everyone who is interested in participating in a weekend of dance and movement.

For more information on how to purchase tickets, sponsor the event or volunteer at the festival email info@southernvermontdancefestival.com.

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